Wisden Obituary
Tamhane, Narendra Shankar, died in Mumbai on March 19, 2002, aged 71. He
kept wicket for India in 21 Tests, bringing off 35 catches and 16 stumpings, and the
Australian wicket-keeper Wally Grout compared his neat, skilful method to that of the
renowned Don Tallon. Despite his accidental introduction to the art, for he was originally
a slow bowler and first put on the gloves when his club's keeper was unavailable, Naren Tamhane was playing Ranji Trophy cricket for Bombay at 22 and a season later,
1954-55, was ever-present during India's first series in Pakistan. He took Subhash
Gupte's leg-spin and Vinoo Mankad's slow left-armers like a natural, and his 19 victims
included seven stumpings, many made with his trademark removal of a single bail. He
also hit an unbeaten 54 in his second Test but, as an average of 10.22 attests, batting
was never his strength at this level.
Tamhane played in all but two of India's next 13 Tests. Then he was in and out of
the side as the selectors preferred Nana Joshi and Budhi Kunderan for their batting.
Yet his keeping in the 1959 Headingley and Oval Tests drew praise from knowledgeable
observers, and significantly he was called up later that year for the Test against Australia
at Kanpur, where a newly laid pitch was expected to take spin. He made only one
dismissal, but that second-innings stumping of the opener Colin McDonald, off Jasu
Patel, was vital. McDonald had been one of the few Australians to play Patel's offspin
with any confidence; Patel went on to finish with 14 wickets and India won by
119 runs. Tamhane played only two more Tests after that, against Pakistan in 1960-
61. His first-class career ended three seasons later, after 93 games in which he made
175 catches and 78 stumpings, becoming the first to register 100 dismissals in the
Ranji Trophy. His 1,459 runs at 18.23 included one century, 109 not out for Bombay
against Baroda in 1958-59. He served as a national selector throughout the 1980s and
as chairman in 1991-92.
Wisden Cricketers' Almanack

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